Bastia vs Le Mans abandoned amid flares, Le Mans’ promotion awaits ruling | OneFootball

Le Mans were 2-0 up when their trip to Bastia was abandoned in stoppage time at Furiani, leaving promotion and Bastia’s relegation subject to validation.

With under two minutes left, flares and firecrackers were thrown from the Bastia end, the first aimed towards goalkeeper Ewan Hatfout’s penalty area. According to L'Équipe, they triggered the stoppage.

At 21:50 the referee, Ruddy Buquet, stopped play on safety grounds and took the teams inside. Later he said a public authority order meant the game would not restart, with a commission to decide if the 2-0 stands.

The league must rule quickly, probably as soon as Sunday, to avoid delaying the play-offs and the promotion-relegation tie. In December, Bastia v Red Star was abandoned for a flare and awarded 3-0 against the Corsicans, plus a suspended one-point penalty.

On the pitch, Erwan Colas headed in from a corner on 16 minutes to silence an 11,000 crowd at Armand-Cesari. Bastia needed a win and a slip from Laval that never came, Laval beat Boulogne-sur-Mer 2-1.

In a bruising contest, Réginald Ray’s team never found a response. Milan Robin struck at 90+1, vital given a draw would have sent Le Mans to the play-offs with Saint-Étienne routing Amiens 5-0.

Coach Patrick Videira noted that promotion joy comes with another club’s relegation. Next season would be the first in 61 years without a Corsican side in the top two tiers. Le Mans fell to the sixth level after 2013 liquidation and rose from National last year.

Source: L'Équipe